Aubrey brings vision to Bruin offense

Aubrey brings vision to Bruin offense

Like the rock singer Joe Walsh, Jason Aubrey can claim, ‘‘Life’s been good to me, so far.”

Less than 10 years after he graduated from Bartlesville High School — and started two years at quarterback for the Bruin football team — Aubrey is back as the team’s offensive coordinator.

‘‘It was pretty exciting,” Aubrey said about his being chosen this year to mentor the offense. ‘‘It’s something (coaching) I’ve always wanted to do, since I was little. ... To have the opportunity to have my first offensive coordinator’s job at my alma mater was a pretty neat deal.”

The results so far are stunning.

Through five games, the Bruins (3-2) are averaging 433 yards of offense and nearly 35 points per game.

Sophomore quarterback Colton Penrod is among the state’s elite passers in yardage and touchdowns (15).

And, the Bruin attack is still developing.

‘‘During the offseason, I preached to these guys all the time about football I.Q.,” he said. ‘‘We had Football 101 meetings about simple things, like this is what we call the flat area and this is the hook zone. ... The second step was having them understanding coverages for receivers and the quarterback. ... That was kind of my first thought, that we’ve got to get our football I.Q. understanding better.”

Aubrey’s derived his knowledge more than from books and watching film.

Following his 2005 graduation from Bartlesville, he headed for a brief stay at the University of Missouri-Rolla, now known as Missouri Science and Technology.

From there, Aubrey transferred to Tabor (Kan.) College, which would become a springboard to his coaching career.

And, he also learned first hand the more painful side of football.

During his redshirt sophomore year, he suffered a sixth-game concussion that ended his season.

The next year, he drew the opening game start against Ottawa University.

On a 3rd-and-7 play, with the Ottawa defense in a strict man-to-man defense, Aubrey tucked the ball into him and took off.

‘‘I saw a lane in which to run,” he recalled. ‘‘I’m running and I get the first down. ... I ended up running out of bounds and one of their defensive backs hit me about three yards out of bounds with his helmet into my jaw and I went out like a light.”

That blow ended Aubrey’s competitive career.

But, it opened up the door for the next phase of his life.

After spending a couple of years coaching at Tabor, Aubrey met Bruin head coach John McKee, while Aubrey was on a recruiting trip to Bartlesville.

‘‘I told him I wanted the best for this place,” Aubrey said.

That encounter led to McKee offering Aubrey an offer to become the receivers’ coach for the 2012 campaign.

In fact, McKee’s email, in late December 2011, brought Aubrey some extra holiday cheer.

‘‘It was kind of like a Christmas present in my email,” he said. ‘‘I’m happy to be back.”

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